PAPAR: Part of the RM300 million soft loan allocated to solve Sabah's water woes will be used to address non-revenue water (NRW).
Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadhillah Yusof urged the Sabah government to reduce NRW in the state by addressing illegal water connections.
Sabah Public Works Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya stated that the current NRW rate in the state stood at 50 per cent, while in the state capital, it was 38 per cent.
"It is evident that the NRW rate in Sabah is high, especially on the west coast. We have made efforts to lower it. Apart from leaking pipes due to their old age and construction that burst piping, our main challenge is illegal water connections.
"Two months ago, the Sabah Water Department conducted a major operation to cut off illegal connections in Sepanggar. There was an improvement in water pressure following this operation.
However, such an operation cannot be a one-time effort as illegal connections continue to occur," he told the media after visiting the Limbahau Raw Water Intake plant here.
Therefore, Shahelmey, who is also the state Deputy Chief Minister, announced that the state Water Department would implement a 'vendor scheme' aimed at reducing water theft by 8 to 10 million litres per day.
The scheme involves the use of bulk meters and static tanks in squatter areas.
It has already been implemented in Kampung Brunei in Sepanggar and will be expanded to three other identified areas.
The Putatan member of Parliament added that part of the RM300 million loan would be allocated for the implementation of the vendor scheme.
When asked whether Sabah was facing a water crisis, Shahelmey stated that the state is experiencing water shortages due to climate change, delays in programme implementation, and high NRW.
"If the water level is lower than 35 per cent, and if we could implement the Papar dam, we would have a stable water supply for the next two to three decades.
"When planning, we also need to consider the effects of climate change and economic activities.
" When we open up plantations, the natural water catchment goes from better to 'less better'."